Monday, August 24, 2015

Healing the Breach

One of the most difficult
things people struggle with are the stinging barbs left by the critical words
of others. It’s not usually the harsh words of a stranger that tends to leave a
wound. It’s the unexpected or unwarranted criticism of those we love and care
about.

Criticism, if not carefully
spoken in love or with a redemptive purpose in mind, can come across as an
insult. Insults offend. They also create a tear in the relationship that then
requires diligent care to restore so that the enemy cannot further exploit that
area of distress. Insensitive words cause others to feel dejected, humiliated, judged, or leave them with a sense of not
measuring up. The person receiving hard
or critical comments can feel knocked off balance. These emotions then tell
them that the person that spoke those words are unsafe and unable to be
trusted, and fear of receiving more of the same treatment causes emotional
distance. A breach of relationship occurs. Over time, and with repeated similar
actions, those broken areas of trust create anger, offense, unforgiveness and
eventually, bitter root judgments against themselves and others.

Harsh and insensitive words
come from our own untended hurts, wounds and irritations. Those things cause us
to be impatient with the growth process in others. Impatience can cause a
person to feel very irritated and unable to adequately love others while they
are working through their own issues. Perhaps we all need to take a step back
and ask whether or not that thing we really want to say to someone else is so
necessary to blurt out, or is it just our pride that tends to elevate judgment
above kindness? While it may feel good momentarily to get some irritation off
of our chest, the reality is, when we do, we often neglect to think about how our
comments may bruise or damage someone else. My friend Reda Sue has a great little saying. Sometimes our soul just wants to be ornery. Isn't that the truth? Pride doesn’t consider how anyone
else feels. It’s only concerned with making ourselves feel better. Once those critical,
judgmental or harsh words leave our mouth, the affect they have on others can
be complex. It can be far worse than what we realize, because the enemy is
right there to take advantage of any opportunity to blow things out of
proportion. When the accuser grabs hold of those words, he magnifies offense
and creates a deeper wound, further dividing the relationship. Before you know it, both sides are at a stand-off.

The key to healing our own
words is to first recognize that we all fall short of the glory of God. We are
all sinners in need of a merciful God. People will sometimes disappoint us. We have all had times when we have failed to make good decisions. We've neglected to stand up when we should have stood up. We've said the wrong things when we should have kept our mouth shut. It could be any number of things, but the point is, we are all human. Should we not have compassion on those that are just as human as we are and prone to stumbling from time to time? Regardless of how we may tend to justify
our words or actions, if we hurt others or cause deliberate pain just so that
we can make ourselves feel better, then we are in need of forgiveness. Pride is
offensive to God. The only way to freedom is through humility, to recognize
that we have offended not just another individual, but the Lord Himself, and
are in need of His mercy.

I am reminded of a parable
Jesus told in Matthew 18 about the unforgiving servant. A king set about to
settle outstanding debts with those that were indebted to him. One man begged
for more time to settle his debt and the king was gracious to him. Yet, later
on, that same man refused to extend the same sort of grace and forgiveness to
someone that was indebted to him. Instead, he viciously grabbed him by the
throat, demanded that his fellow servant pay him what was owed, and threw him in jail.
He refused to release this man from what he felt he was owed. Other servants
found out about this man’s unwillingness to forgive a debt and told the king
what he had done. The king was so outraged that this is what he told him:

“Then his master, after he had called him,
said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you
begged me. Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just
as I had pity on you?’ And his master was angry, and delivered him to the
torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.”

“Jesus said, ‘So My heavenly
Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his
brother his trespasses.” (Matthew 18:32-35).

Did you catch the fact that the first man and the second man were both servants to the king? Neither one was any better than the other, yet one lorded over the other and refused to forgive his debt. What the first man was really saying through his actions is that he did not want the other man to be free or healed. That is an offense that warrants serious correction from the Lord. Can I tell you something? We are all indebted to Jesus Christ for paying a debt we could not pay. He paid with His life in exchange for ours. He ransomed us from eternal punishment as our sins deserved. When we refuse to be gracious towards anyone - regardless of what they may or may not have done - that is an offense to the cross of Christ.

Any unhealed offense or
unforgiveness will result in some sort of affliction and captivity if it is not
dealt with immediately. Affliction can mean a lot of things and none of them are
good. Friend, your spirit can’t breathe if your understanding of the gospel is
distorted. When a person rationalizes their own faults with compassion and
grace but cannot extend that same compassion and mercy towards others because
they have a critical spirit, then they have established a false standard. God
hates false weights and measures because it results in injustice. The gospel is
not biased like that or full of prejudice. That is the beauty of the good news. The
gospel that you apply to yourself must be equally applied to others as well. God’s
grace and mercy is available to all.

“Search
me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there
is any wicked way in me. Lead me in the way everlasting.” Ps. 139:23,24

David was a man with many
faults but considered a friend of the King. It was because he wasn’t afraid to
examine his own heart and ask the Lord to do the same. Psalm 51 is another
example of the integrity of David’s heart. He knew he was prone to sin but
asked God to create a clean heart in him. The thing that David feared most was
the thought of God’s Holy Spirit departing from his life. He was compelled to
worship God in Spirit and in truth. God honored his request and showed him his
faults so that David could repent and have his heart in right standing with the
Lord. This is the right way to relate to God. Friend, I pray that you would
earnestly seek the Lord to inquire of Him. Ask Him if there is anything you
have tried to sweep under the rug. Sometimes when we don’t really know how to
deal with a situation, we tend to try to avoid it altogether. That doesn’t mean
it’s really resolved. God is dealing with His body, His bride, and He is
leaving no stone unturned. You can’t hide from Him, and I pray you won’t try.
If there is someone in your life you tend to want to avoid, then consider that the
Lord may be asking you to deal with underlying issues. You will never truly
move forward until you’ve released everyone from your past. God let you off the
hook. Don’t you think it’s time you do the same for others? Ask the Lord to give you a double measure of
grace and compassion to allow your forgiveness be more than just words out of
your mouth, but genuine.

I will tell you how to make it
effective and real. I am reminded of when I used to have to pull weeds out of
our garden when I was young. Oh, how I hated that job! Have you ever tried to
pull up a tightly rooted plant up out of dry ground? It’s impossible. Part of
the root will break off and on the surface it might look better for a while,
but the plant will always grow back. But, if the ground is well saturated you
can pull up the weeds, and they come up very easily. Even the long rooted,
stubborn plants will come out as long as the saturation goes down deep enough
to reach the tip of the roots. I remember pulling on those big dandelion plants
trying to get them out of the ground. It’s almost like surgery. You have to do
it so gingerly and carefully so as not to break off a part of the root. You
have to get the whole thing. If you ever got assigned to weed pulling as a
child, you know what I mean! When you finally felt it give way and begin to
come up out of the earth, it was so rewarding to get that bugger finally pulled
up, wasn’t it? Spiritually rooted issues are a lot like that too.

If you’re heart is not well
saturated in worship and prayer, those stubbornly rooted issues are not going
to come up. You may get part of it, but to do the real surgery, you have to be
in the presence of God where your heart is humbled and compliant to whatever He
requests. You have to be properly motivated, and sometimes that is where God
allows the devil to bring affliction for a season. God is not into tormenting
His people, BUT, the devil is more than willing if we open a door to him. Unforgiveness
grants him legal access. Go back to Matthew 18:32-35. Whether it be poverty, infirmity,
a thorn in your flesh of some sort, or even mental torment of your thoughts so
that you have no peace; God will allow the enemy to bring affliction if a
person is guilty of breaking a spiritual law. He wants us to figure out that
the affliction is connected to a heart issue that has gone on too long.

It’s time to clear the
airwaves of judgments and harsh, critical words. They don’t just hang over the
heads of those that you spoke them about; they hang over your head as well.
Those words laced with judgment will block your path. It’s time to ask the Lord
to cut those strings and let those words fall to the ground. Tell the Lord you
release those that have offended, hurt or disappointed you. Ask the Lord to let
no more bad fruit come from word laced with the spirit of death. Speak blessing
over those individuals, and ask the Lord to bless and heal all wounds so that
the enemy can no longer take advantage of either of you. You’d be surprised at
what has been held back, waiting for you to take these steps of faith. The
answers to prayer that you’ve been waiting for may just be connected to this
very thing. When one thing is released, other things often follow suit.

About Me

Norm and Laura Gagnon believe the kingdom of God is not only in word, but in power. The Gagnons are blessed with the gift of understanding God’s restorative work through their own personal experiences. They stand on the promises of God and encourage others in an elevated expectation of the miraculous, boldly declaring the gift of His life.

Worship, prophetic ministry, gifts of healing, discernment, teaching and and a strong emphasis on deliverance are all a part of their gifting and ministry that enable others to break free from limitations that restrict growth, fruitfulness and increase. The Gagnons live in Escondido, California and are available for ministry meetings, prayer and worship gatherings and teaching workshops. If you would like to contact the Gagnons or schedule a ministry appointment, please contact them at: xpectamiracle@yahoo.com.

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